Tres Amigos Cómicos
by Masked Man 2
Summary: An analysis of the relationship between Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio in 'Romeo and Juliet.' Written as an essay for school.


**Author's Note: So...basically, I was going through my old schoolwork and found this random essay I wrote for a freshman year (of high school) honors challenge, so I thought, "why not post it?" Yeah. So, ah, if it sucks...blame my 14-year-old self.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own** _ **Romeo and Juliet**_ **, though I** _ **do**_ **technically own a copy now.**

Tres Amigos Cómicos:

An Analysis of Character Relationships in _"Romeo and Juliet"_

The relationship between Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio is complicated, but adds a depth to the play in the form of contradicting characters. Romeo, the title character, is Shakespeare's tragic hero, and his two friends add both humor and tragedy to the plot. All three of them take very different approaches to life; dramatic and contrary, good and fair, and wild and world-beating. These different lifestyles result in very different ends for all three characters.

Romeo, our aforementioned tragic hero, represents paradox, control (or lack of it), and love. At the beginning of the play, he is sad, depressed, out of the favor of the girl he loves, and _very_ contrary. An example of this is his discussion with Benvolio after the brawl in Act 1.

"O brawling love, O loving hate, O anything of nothing first create! O heavy lightness, serious vanity, misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms, feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, still-waking sleep that is not what it is! This love feel I, that feel no love in this" (1. 1. 181-187).

Romeo is talking about his love for Rosaline as though it was a bad thing, and his oxymorons reflect the conflicting emotions that he feels as a result of this unrequited love.

Romeo also represents a lack of control. Many of the things he says, like "He that hath the steerage of my course direct my sail (1. 4. 119-120)," or saying that he is Fortune's fool, indicate that Romeo believes in Fate. He does not think that he is in control of his destiny, or, subsequently, his choices. He thinks that he has, per se, a 'pilot' driving the 'boat' that is his life.

Romeo is also quite young, and it shows. He is rather naive, and seems to base his love off of a girl's beauty; first with Rosaline, then with Juliet. (It should be mentioned that he forgot Rosaline the minute he saw Juliet...) In fact, he says, "Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight, for I ne'er saw true beauty till this night (1. 5. 59-60)." Friar Lawrence, therefore, thinks that a boy's love comes from his eyes, not his heart. However, Romeo does love Juliet- a little too much. Anyone who is prepared to commit suicide because their lover is dead is likely more than a little unstable, overdramatic, and , like Romeo, thinks that their doomed fate was inevitable.

However, Romeo's cousin Benvolio takes a very different approach to life. Not only is he Romeo's "coz," he is a friend and confidante. He represents goodness, integrity, determination, diplomacy, and honesty. Benvolio always tries to do the right things, whether it's stopping a fight ("Part, fools! You know not what you do (1. 1. 65-66)!"), or trying to lift Romeo from his depression. He 'does but keep the peace," so to speak.

Benvolio is also honest. When asked to give an account of the fight that occurred after Romeo's wedding, he does it, without manipulating the facts to make Romeo look innocent. Clearly, he is one of those who is truly good, and makes the choices that grant him a longer, safer life.

Mercutio, on the other hand, represents wildness, foolhardiness, and jest. He is essentially Benvolio's foil; a slightly bipolar joker who has a tendency to get himself killed in fights that he starts. Unlike Romeo, Mercutio places little faith in dreams, portents, and destiny. "I talk of dreams, which are the children of an idle brain, begot of nothing but vain fantasy (1. 4. 104-105)." He also makes attempts to bring Romeo out of his despair, but, unlike Benvolio, who does it by talking to Romeo and offering him advice, Mercutio does it by teasing him, calling him madman, passion, lover, and humors. He intends to make Romeo feel better by mocking his love, which, supposedly, would anger him, thus making him forget his depression.

Mercutio does have a darker side, though; a provocative, unpredictable, quarrelsome side. He provokes Tybalt into a fight, having no better reason but thinking Romeo a coward. He definitely believes that he is in control of his life and his choices, and obviously doesn't care.

In conclusion, all three characters are very different, and their differing approaches to life may be Shakespeare's way of saying that how you live affects how you die, and what will happen to you over the course of your life. Romeo's internal conflicts, his passionate love, and his dramatic attitude led him to kill himself; Mercutio's love of fighting and his wild personality proved to be his undoing. Benvolio might have been the best-intentioned and most peaceful of the three; it's worth mentioning that he is the only one still alive at the end of the play. So, going by this evidence, Shakespeare seems to be saying that if you live honestly and peacefully, you will live live longer than someone who lets fate and emotions control them.


End file.
